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2003 ROLLS-ROYCE
PHAMTOM
The first Rolls-Royce test mule under BMW ownership was caught running around in the hot North American desert regions. Although heavily draped in camouflage, nothing can hide the distinctive Rolls-Royce grille, the huge Rolls-Royce size, and the sound of the all-new V12 engine. On January 1, 2003, BMW officially has rights to the Rolls-Royce name and will likely begin delivery of their first all-new Rolls-Royce. An annual production of just 1000 per year is expected to be built at the Goodwood, U.K., plant, although the body will likely be made in Dingolfing, Germany. |
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CONVERTIBLE CODE
NAMED "RR02"
Official confirmation that a Rolls-Royce
drop top was in the works came months ago, and now we have the first
shots of a prototype in action. The Phantom-based convertible is
expected to join the company's lineup in 2007, with the upcoming
Bentley Continental GT convertible as the next closest competition,
give or take a couple hundred thousand dollars.Since BMW took over the company nearly three years ago, sales of Rolls' single Phantom model haven't quite met with the parent company's expectations. The recent stretched version of the Phantom has increased the brand's appeal in the Middle East, but the company needs a slightly more dynamic product — along the lines of this Phantom-based convertible — in order to broaden its American consumer base and further pin Maybach into the corner. Rolls-Royce's spin-off of its primary model will draw a great deal of its inspiration from the 100EX concept which appeared at the 2004 Geneva Motor Show to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the Rolls-Royce partnership. The Rolls-Royce convertible, as well as the 100EX, were both created by the company's former head of exterior design, Marek Djordjevic, at BMW's Design Works studio in California. This two-door, four-seat vehicle will eschew the concept's jaw-dropping 9.0-liter V16 in favor of the standard Phantom's more manageable 6.75-liter V12. The convertible will also share its aluminum spaceframe chassis with the Phantom. The bold reverse-opening suicide doors, clear in these photos, will migrate from the 100EX concept to the production convertible. The Rolls-Royce convertible will be hand-built at the company's Goodwood factory in the U.K. starting in 2007. |